Originally Posted By: Salmo g.
The Chehalis dam is only feasible if we choose the California prerogative of gravity, where water flows uphill, toward money. There is no way this dam makes economic sense, even if the natural environment and natural resources are valued at zero. No offense to Chehalis and Centralia, but there aren't enough key resources to protect that economically offsets the huge cost of the project. If this is a Corps project, the local sponsor mush cough up 25% of the cost. If Lewis Co. residents got to vote on it, they would vote it down just because they are against taxes more than they want to pay for flood control that won't benefit the vast majority of residents. This is one main reason they created the Chehalis basin-wide task force, so that they can spread the cost out to include Thurston and Grays Harbor Counties as well.

I continue to question why it's unacceptable to have I-5 closed for 5 days once every 10 years, on average, due to flooding. What is the loss? There are alternative routes for interstate commerce that may add a couple hours to total travel time. At some point, the notion that the control of nature is possible, let alone economically feasible, needs to be vetted.

The true costs versus benefits of this debacle needs to be objectively analyzed.

Sg


I agree that it makes no sense, and that's what tells me a few, rich a $$holes, looking to get richer, are behind it. As we've seen exemplified plenty of late, rich a$$holes tend to fare pretty well with our incorruptible legislators.

Looking at the various alternatives, it's pretty easy to figure out what area is deemed "critical" for protection. Not surprisingly, the tenants on that area of land have names like Home Depot, Walmart, etc. The people that own that land are probably motivated to get those folks some new neighbors, to take advantage of the great savings that come with building in flood plains, all at the expense of the taxpayers in Lewis, Thurston, and Grays Harbor counties (oh yeah, also at the expense of native fish and wildlife).

I think you may be underestimating the significance of I-5 being shut down for extended periods. Delays in the shipping business are costly, especially on the scale they occur when a major shipping route is blocked. I would venture a guess the people making the decisions will be more interested in what each alternative does to protect I-5 than what it does to protect local residents and businesses.